William spaeks



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

W'ILLIAM SPARKS, OF NEWT YORK, N. Y.

COAL-SCREEN.

Specification forming .To all whom 'it 'may concern Be it known that l,WTLLLAM SPARKS, of the city and State of New York, have invented, made,and applied to use a certain new and lmproved Goal-Screen 5 and I dohereby declare the following to he a full, clear, and exact descriptionof said invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing, making apart of this specitication, wherein I have represented a perspectiveview of the invention I have made complete and ready for use.

The nature and object of my invention is to enable the coal-dealer todeliver the coal to his customers directly from the doclr as perfectlyscreened as when it is hauled to and screened at the yard, by whichmeans he is enabled to reduce the cost of his coal to himself and theprice of the same to his customers.

The nature of my invention consists of a frame-work, a., (see drawing,)constructed of any good, sound timber or joist, about four by fourinches square, the four posts at the corners of said frame being sixfeet apart at the bottom and three feet et the top, and nine feet, orthereabout, high. On the top of the frame-work ay is a platform, b,projecting two feet around three sides of the frame, supported, as shownat c, by pieces attached to the frame at the top. An ordinary screen, d,attached to the frame is upon the side of the frame over which theplatform b does not project, supported by a long hook and staple fromthe post or leg of the frame-work a, to the screen d at e c. To thelower end of the screen d isa kind of apron, to convey the dust from thecoal that passes through the screen d to the ground under theframe-work.

Upon the top of the platform b is a feeding boXor hopper, f, into whichthe coal is emptied from the tub in which it is hoisted out of thevessel at the dock, for the purpose of graduatin g the quantity of coalpassing over the screen d into the cart or other vehicle or receptacleby means of a sliding gate, g, worked by a lever, h, to increase ordiminish the aperture in the in-feeding boXf for the egress of the coalupon the screen d.

The feeding-box f is constructed about three part of Letters Patent No.49,932, dated September 12, 1865; antedated September 6, 1865. v

feet square, two feet deep at the mouth or aperture of egress, and onefoot at the opposite side of the same, as indicated by the dotted lineon the feeding-box f. The feeding-boxf is supported and secured upon theplatform b by means of four legs and hooks and staples, as shown ati t'i.

Having completed the construction of my invention, I place it in aproper position for the reception of coal from the vessel 'or cars atthe dock or depot, the cart or othervehicle being placed under thescreen cl. The driver of the cart or vehicle takes his place upon thetop ofthe platform b to receive the coal as it is hoisted from thevessel or car, he empties it into the feeding box or hopper j', and bymeans of the lever 7L, acting upon the sliding gate g, regulates theegress of coal out of the feeding-box f upon the screen in such a mannerthat the dust of the coal will be entirely separated from the coal anddeposited upon theground or into areceptacle under the framework a. Thecost of transporting and screening the coal at the yard is thus savedand the price of one of the most important articles of universalconsumption materially reduced.

I do not claim the dierent parts composing my improved coal-screen,separately considered, nor the arrangement ot the inclined screen, whichis used in every coal-yard, and the hopper or feeding-box j', the bottomof which is also inclined, but not so that the impact of the stream ofcoal shall be perpendicular, or nearly so, to the said screen,assetforth in claim of Samuel Boothes patent, dated October 20, 1859; but

Vhat I do claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

The combination of the screen d and gate g, at the upper end of the saidscreen, with the frame-work a and the elevated platform b, in the mannerand for the purpose set forth.

WM. SPARKS.

Witnesses:

JOHN MEECHUTT, THOMAS COUETNEY, W. WHEELWRIGHT.

